Citation
Oyelude, A.A. (2015), "What’s trending in libraries from the internet cybersphere", Library Hi Tech News, Vol. 32 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-02-2015-0013
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
What’s trending in libraries from the internet cybersphere
Article Type: What’s trending in libraries from the internet cybersphere From: Library Hi Tech News, Volume 32, Issue 2
This first edition in 2015 of the column starts with – you guessed right – Books. Books are trending on the internet. Technology trends on the internet are also the in-thing. Look out this year for more vignettes from the cybersphere. Leave your comments at my twitter handle. Happy New Year!
Books creatively helping New Year resolutions
Posted by Ginni Chen on 5th January, 2015, are ten ways books can help with New Year resolutions. From the post, books can help you get in shape, swear less, control your temper, spend less money, slow down and enjoy life, meet new people, learn a new language, unplug and kick unhealthy habits! As seemingly jocular as these creative ways are set out, they can actually (some of them) make bookworms out of some die-hard book haters! Check them out at: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/10-creative-ways-books-can-help-with-every-new-years-resolution/?adbid=10152880838760020&adbpl=fb&adbpr=9122810019&adbsc=social_20150105_38285987
A book to read – The Ghost-Boy
From the Mail Online found at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2010610/The-Ghost-Boy-The-uplifting-story-Martin-Pistorius-survived-mystery-paralysis-love.html%23comments comes the story about a boy’s journey recovering from an illness that made him “disappear into himself”. This book published by Simon and Shuster is trending. Tenacity and technology helped him get back to life. More can be gathered from http://finance.yahoo.com/news/true-story-man-misdiagnosed-vegetable-231812959.html
Authors Guild no longer trying to sue libraries for digitally scanning book collection
The report is made that the Authors Guild has given up trying to sue libraries for digitally scanning book collections. This had been the Guild's aim in 2014, but they lost the case against Hathitrust, an organization set up to manage the book scanning program for a group of university libraries. Techdirt (a blog created by Mike Masnick which has grown into a group blogging effort, uses a proven economic framework to analyze and offer insight into news stories about changes in government policy, technology and legal issues that affect companies’ ability to innovate and grow) in its Web site post stated that the libraries were just operating on a fair-use basis. That’s what’s trending. Read more at http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150108/17160929640/authors-guild-gives-up-trying-to-sue-libraries-digitally-scanning-book-collection.shtml.
Design thinking for libraries
The Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation in collaboration with IDEO, an international design and consulting firm founded in Palo Alto, California, have created a toolkit specifically for the library setting in close cooperation with project teams in Chicago and Aarhus, to guide an individual through design thinking so that he/she can start coming up with solutions to everyday challenges within the library. Design thinking, or human-centered design, is all about starting with people – the users who visit the library. The toolkit makes one think like a designer to bring about transformative changes. Libraries have used the toolkit to:
develop new spaces that promote play as a central part of childhood learning;
engage teens in maker-oriented events that encourage deeper, long-lasting connections with librarians; and
create new programs that facilitate users to teach one another about digital media resources.
The toolkit comes in two parts: the toolkit guide, and the accompanying activities workbook. For those who do not have much time to look through, there is an “At-a-Glance-Guide” which introduces how they might get started using design thinking in one day. Design thinking encourages the user through five steps of empathize, define, ideate, #prototype and test. More can be found at http://designthinkingforlibraries.com/ and the toolkit at: http://www.designthinkingforlibraries.com. Also check up at http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/using-design-thinking-higher-education%20Design%20Thinking%20is%20trending!
Internet trolling
Internet trolling is an emerging area of research that poses challenges in clearly defining, measuring and understanding it. According to Dr Yasmin Ibrahim, Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of E-Politics (IJEP):
[…] a troll is an internet or social media user who willfully creates discord through a multitude of online behaviors which may incite or upset people through inflammatory or provocative remarks, online stalking, or a combination of both. This behaviour disrupts a community discussion by provoking or upsetting the readers.
It is a form of online harassment that most times has dire consequences, as it works on the emotions of the person attacked. Legislation against internet trolling seems to be slow in coming; however, legislations like The Malicious Communications Act 1988 and the Communications Act of 2003 have been used for prosecution in the United Kingdom. IGI Global on their Web page posted comments on the issue. Find out more at http://www.igi-global.com/newsroom/archive/digital-teens-antisocial-network/1994
User-driven technology trends
Posted on September 8, 2014, by John Helmer of Semantico, it is noted that user’s adoption of technology is what matters and not the technology itself per se. User adoption is not only quantitative, but also qualitative, as they use the technologies in very creative and surprising manners. Users love efficiency and are protective of their time and attention. Some technologies like SMS, Twitter, P2P file-sharing, Bring Your Own Device and Open Source fall in this category. Examples of ways in which these IT-driven technologies have impacted on users can be got from: http://www.semantico.com/2014/09/5-user-driven-tech-trends-that-blindsided-the-it-department/
#Becauseofapubliclibrary
A January 12, 2015, post by Sarah Goodyear is trending. With 1.2 k shares since it was posted, it notes the good deeds of the Ferguson Library in the crisis period after the Ferguson shootings. The positive effect this has had in raising funds for public libraries is commendable, and the recent tweet the library has posted as a result of the fundraising has led to the hashtag #Becauseofapubliclibrary. Get to know more and probably post what you have achieved #Becauseofapubliclibrary at http://www.citylab.com/politics/2015/01/this-ferguson-library-twitter-hashtag-just-might-make-you-feel-better-about-the-world/384449/
Twitter video arrival great for libraries
A blog post by Ned Potter at claims that Twitter video will be great for libraries. This app offers to post 30-second videos which can be uploaded to Twitter where they will be played within the tweet without having to leave the site or the app. Libraries can “think mobile” and use Twitter video for Lightning library tour, Ask a Librarian, Previews and other creative things in the library. How else can you use Twitter video? It’s trending, so take a look at http://www.ned-potter.com/blog/twitter-video-is-here-and-its-a-good-thing-for-libraries
Libraries for porn videos?
A sarcastic post on new trends in use of libraries was posted by Annoyed Librarian, critiquing the use of library for porn video by a former Oregon University student. Much as “promoting libraries and their use is what libraries are about”, it is certainly not a good trend to have porn in libraries. There are mild debates on the appropriate punishment for the offender. See more at http://lj.libraryjournal.com/blogs/annoyedlibrarian/2015/02/02/the-new-trend-in-library-use/
3D printing trends
3D printing is taking center stage more and more. More people are taking advantage of using it for making sophisticated gadgets, as reported by Whitney Hipolite at http://3dprint.com/41528/3d-printed-guitar-hand/ of the 3D printing technology being used by a company to create a prosthetic hand that can play a guitar, and also by Te Edwards at http://3dprint.com/41549/3d-print-solar-power-vehicles/ about students of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, who used the technology to build a pair of solar-powered vehicles. 3D printing is trending on the internet cybersphere! Do check it out.
Adetoun A. Oyelude (toyelude@yahoo.com) is a Principal Librarian based at the Kenneth Dike Library, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.